Monitor Elementary School

The 2024-2025 school year is off to a great start! Our students have been getting to know their new classmates and have been learning all about what it means to be a mallard. Students have learned about our school wide expectations and how mallards SOAR! As mallards, we work hard to Stay safe, Own our Actions, Act Responsibly, and Respect Ourselves, Others, and This Place. Our students have made us proud!

We look forward to seeing all of our families for conferences this month! This will be a great opportunity for you to connect with your child's teacher and hear all about what your child has learned so far this school year. Thank you for partnering with us to help your child succeed! We are so thankful for all of our families and we're looking forward to another great month at Monitor!

Mrs. Andi Acuff, Principal

Mrs. Cassie Marquette, Assistant Principal

Below are some important dates this month:

• Monday, September 2nd: Labor Day - No School
• Friday, September 6th: Hat Day - $1.00
• Monday, September 9th: Mallard University Begins
• Wednesday, September 11th: Patriot Day - Red, White, and Blue
• Friday, September 13th: Grandparents' Day Lunch
• Friday, September 13th: Team Spirit Day
• Sunday, September 15th: Hispanic Heritage Month Begins
• Monday, September 16th: Book Fair Week & Constitution Week
• Monday, September 16th: No Mallard University This Week
• Monday, September 16th: Student-Led Conferences
• Tuesday, September 17th: Student-Led Conferences
• Wednesday, September 18th: Mini Wild Dog Race @ HBHS
• Friday, September 20th: Team Spirit Day

• Monday, September 23rd: Celebrate Freedom Week
• Monday, September 23rd: Mallard University Resumes
• Friday, September 27th: Ice Cream Sandwich Sale - $1.00
• Friday, September 27th: Team Spirit Day

In partnership with First Church Springdale, all students at Monitor will be provided with general school supplies to be used in the classroom. Instead of purchasing supplies, we ask families to pay a small school supply fee to help teachers replenish supplies throughout the school year. This year, the school supply fee will be $9.99. Students will be provided with a water bottle as part of their school supplies as well. You can pay your child's school supply fee online using the link below. When paying online, please include your child's name and grade at checkout so the fee can be credited to your child.

Pay School Supply Fee Online

Mallard University (MU) is an after school program funded by a 21CCLC grant for students in 2nd-5th grade. If you are interested in your child attending Mallard University, please fill out and return the form sent home with your child. Students who are accepted to the program will have a letter sent home with them. Mallard University will begin on Monday, September 9th and will be Monday-Thursday after school until 5:30pm. There will be NO Mallard University the week of September 16th due to conferences.

Our school hours are 7:45am-3:10pm on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday. Students are dismissed early on Wednesdays with our school hours being 7:45am-1:50pm. Students who arrive after 7:45am will need to be checked in by an adult in the front office. When using the front entrance to check in students arriving late to school, please park in a parking spot and walk your child to the front entrance. Our car rider line is in the back of the building. Car rider line begins at 7:30am each morning and closes at 7:45am. When picking up students in car rider line in the afternoon, please be sure your student's car tag is displayed in the front window of your car and leave the car tag visible until your child has loaded.

Grandparents' Day is Sunday, September 8th! In order to celebrate the amazing grandparents who care for our mallards, grandparents are invited to come eat lunch with their grandchild(ren) on Friday, September 13th. Due to space, please limit guests to two per student. Grandparents can bring their own lunch or purchase a lunch from the cafeteria for $5.00. Lunch will include cheese pizza, green beans, carrots, fruit, a cookie, and tea. Cash or check will be accepted. Below are the times fo reach grade level's lunch period. Please use the RSVP form linked below to let us know if you plan to come! When you come for lunch, please bring your ID and arrive early to check in.

Kindergarten: 11:30am-12:00pm // 1st Grade: 11:10am-11:40am // 2nd Grade: 10:50am-11:20am

3rd Grade: 10:30am-11:00am // 4th Grade: 12:10pm-12:40pm // 5th Grade: 11:50am-12:20pm

Grandparents' Day RSVP Form

Conferences will be held Monday, September 16th and Tuesday, September 17th. Please look for information from your child's teacher regarding scheduling a time for your conference. We look forward to sharing more about what your student will be learning this year and the progress they have made so far!

This year, all elementary schools in Springdale are using ROOMS as the primary communication platform between teachers and families. Families should download the Springdale Public Schools app and use the unique code sent home by your child's teacher to register for access. Using the app, you'll be able to receive important updates and chat with your child's teacher. If you aren't already signed up, be sure to ask your child's teacher at conferences about how to get connected with ROOMS.

Sign up to run in the Mini Wild Dog Races! A one time entry fee of $5.00 enters your student into all three races. Your student can pick up an entry form with race information during P.E. class or in the front office. Kindergarten-2nd grade students run a half mile race, and 3rd-5th students run a one mile race. The dates and locations for each race are as follows: September 18th at Har-Ber High School, October 2nd at Sonora Middle School, and October 16th at George Junior High School.

Please apply for free and reduced lunch today! Many students qualify, and we kindly request that all families complete the application. You can apply using the link below. Please choose "Apply for Benefits As a Guest."

Free and Reduced Meal Application

Beginning this month, students in kindergarten thru 3rd grade will be taking state required literacy (K-3) and math (K-2) screeners. These screeners will take the place of the NWEA MAP assessments we have taken in the past. The screeners will provide relevant information to help guide instruction and will help differentiate between students that need intervention or additional support and those that do not. You can read the parent flyer below for more information. Grade level teams will share information on testing dates, and student results will be shared with families after testing is complete.

Monitor Elementary School has a therapy dog that will come to school once a week during the school year. Gus is a certified therapy animal through Love on a Leash and is handled by Mrs. McGooden, our speech language pathologist. If you are comfortable with your child interacting with Gus, no action is needed. If you have any questions or concerns, feel free to contact Mrs. McGooden at (479) 750-8749.

By state law, we are only allowed to offer food that does not meet smart snack criteria on nine school days each year. These school days have been designated and submitted to the state. To remain in compliance with this requirement, please avoid sending food items for the class for birthday celebrations or other reasons. Teachers will send home information on when classroom celebrations will occur and when outside food may be provided. On our designated food days, we will offer treats for sale as a fundraiser for our school. Students are welcome to participate but not required to do so. We want to do all we can to make sure our mallards are healthy and ready to learn!

Attendance at school is important for successful academic progress. Regular attendance is also required by Arkansas State Law 6-18-221. It is important for students to be at school each day and on time. Our goal at Monitor Elementary is to have all students miss no more than five days each semester. We do understand that children get sick periodically, however students should be at school unless they have a fever, have been vomiting, or have diarrhea. In addition, every effort should be made to schedule appointments outside school hours or on non-school days. Below you will find the 2024-2025 academic calendar. Please refer to this when scheduling appointments or trips so you can ensure students don't miss school when possible! If your child will not be at school, please call the school office at (479) 750-8749 or reach out to your child's teacher.

Principal: Mrs. Andi Acuff
Assistant Principal: Cassie Marquette
Phone: (479)750-8749

Address: 3955 East Monitor Road, Springdale, AR

School Email: monitorinfo@sdale.org
Website: https://monitor.sdale.org/
Facebook: facebook.com/MonitorMallards